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Engineer McDonald on Harvey's last-minute Indy miracle
Allen McDonald has worked with some of IndyCar’s best drivers, and with his shift from Graham Rahal’s car to Jack Harvey’s machine this season, the veteran race engineer has seen the pilot of the No. 30 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda double down when it mattered most.
On the cusp of being sent home at the end of Sunday, Harvey dug deep and willed his way into the field of 33 with the final run of the day to bump his way into the 107th Indianapolis 500.
“It's unbelievable,” McDonald told RACER. “We've been really struggling for balance and speed, and he's just been flat stuck with it. And you know, we put him in some difficult setups and things like that to try and find speed and he's just gone with it, hasn't fazed him one bit.”
Harvey’s leap from 34th and out of the field to 33rd and in came at the expense of teammate Graham Rahal, which shouldn’t come as a surprise to those who know Harvey’s history.
“He's been so determined, and so positive,” McDonald added. “And as a team, we've obviously made a pretty tough month of May for ourselves and he's just been the spirit behind us. He's really pushed us and it's been amazing.”
Marshall Pruett
The 2026 season marks Marshall Pruett's 40th year working in the sport. In his role today for RACER, Pruett covers open-wheel and sports car racing as a writer, reporter, photographer, and filmmaker. In his previous career, he served as a mechanic, engineer, and team manager in a variety of series, including IndyCar, IMSA, and World Challenge.
Read Marshall Pruett's articles
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